{"id":17475,"date":"2026-02-17T09:32:48","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T14:32:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/?page_id=17475"},"modified":"2026-02-17T09:33:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T14:33:26","slug":"love-safely-this-valentines-day-get-free-condoms-from-the-crater-health-district","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/2026-regional-news-releases\/love-safely-this-valentines-day-get-free-condoms-from-the-crater-health-district\/","title":{"rendered":"Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day &#8211; Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>February 13, 2026<br \/>\n<strong>Media Contact: Tara Rose, <\/strong><a href=\"mailto:Tara.Rose@vdh.virginia.gov\"><strong>Tara.Rose@vdh.virginia.gov<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day<br \/>\n<\/strong><em>Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>PETERSBURG, Va.\u2013 It\u2019s no coincidence that Valentine\u2019s Day is also National Condom Day! One of the simplest ways to show you care is to protect the health of those you love. The Crater Health District (CHD) provides free condoms to support safer and healthier sexual relationships.<\/p>\n<p>Valentine\u2019s Day is often associated with flowers, chocolates, and dinner dates. CHD reminds you that protection should also be part of the plan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNational Condom Week is an important reminder that protecting our community starts with simple, informed choices, and condoms remain one of the most effective tools we have to help us stay healthy, support our partners, and prevent infections,\u201d said Crater District Health Director, Dr. Alton Hart, Jr.<\/p>\n<p>Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) remain a serious public health concern in Virginia.\u00a0 More than 54,000 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/Virginina-2024-Sexually-Transmitted-Infection-Surveillance-Report.pdf\">STIs were reported in Virginia in 2024<\/a>.\u00a0 The increase in syphilis diagnoses among women is of particular concern.\u00a0 The rate of newly diagnosed syphilis cases among women <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/Syphilis-VA-STI-Report-2024.pdf\">increased 144%<\/a> from 2020 to 2024.<\/p>\n<p>Cases of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/syphilis\/about\/about-congenital-syphilis.html\">congenital syphilis<\/a>, when a pregnant person passes syphilis to a baby during pregnancy or childbirth, increased for the fifth straight year in Virginia. In 2024, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/Congenital-Syphilis-VA-STI-Report-2024-Accessible.pdf\">35 cases of congenital syphilis<\/a> were reported among newly born infants, the highest case count observed in more than 30 years in Virginia.<\/p>\n<p>Because many STIs, including syphilis, often show no <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/sti\/about\/index.html#cdc_disease_basics_symptoms-signs-and-symptoms\">symptoms<\/a>, you can spread them without knowing it. Using condoms consistently and correctly is an effective way to reduce the risk of STIs and unintended pregnancy.<\/p>\n<p>The Virginia Department of Health distributes condoms statewide through its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/disease-prevention\/partneragencies\/\">Condom Distribution Program<\/a>, which is designed to reduce HIV and other STIs through free access to protection.<\/p>\n<p>Free condoms are available at the Crater Health District and through community partner organizations.<\/p>\n<p>You can contact call 804-863-1652 or visit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/crater\/\">Crater Health District<\/a>.to locate free condoms nearby.<\/p>\n<p>Organizations interested in becoming distribution sites should contact the HIV-STD Hotline Supervisor at <a href=\"mailto:HIV-stdhotline@vdh.virginia.gov\">HIV-stdhotline@vdh.virginia.gov<\/a>. Participating organizations may order up to 100,000 condoms per year.<\/p>\n<p>CHD offers a Men\u2019s Sexual Health Clinic in Petersburg on the 2<sup>nd<\/sup> &amp; 4<sup>th<\/sup> Mondays from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. \u00a0For more information about\u00a0or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/crater\/services\/\">Services &amp; Programs \u2013 Crater Health District<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Make this Valentine\u2019s Day a night to remember, not a diagnosis you want to forget.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"># # #<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>February 13, 2026 Media Contact: Tara Rose, Tara.Rose@vdh.virginia.gov Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District &nbsp; PETERSBURG, Va.\u2013 It\u2019s no coincidence that Valentine\u2019s Day is also National Condom Day! One of the simplest ways to show you care is to protect the health of those you love. The Crater [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":258,"featured_media":0,"parent":16853,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[1536,1512,922,372,1140,239,547,1535,1538,455,1513],"class_list":["post-17475","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","tag-condom-distribution-program","tag-condoms","tag-congenital-syphilis","tag-crater-health-district","tag-dr-alton-hart","tag-hiv","tag-mens-sexual-health-clinic","tag-national-condom-day","tag-sexually-transmitted-infections-stis","tag-syphilis","tag-valentines-day"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day - Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/2026-regional-news-releases\/love-safely-this-valentines-day-get-free-condoms-from-the-crater-health-district\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day - Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District - Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"February 13, 2026 Media Contact: Tara Rose, Tara.Rose@vdh.virginia.gov Love Safely This Valentine\u2019s Day Get Free Condoms from the Crater Health District &nbsp; PETERSBURG, Va.\u2013 It\u2019s no coincidence that Valentine\u2019s Day is also National Condom Day! 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